QT 1 Aug 11, We need to respond to sin seriously

Jer 34:8-12,15-18 (NIV) The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to proclaim freedom for the slaves. 9 Everyone was to free his Hebrew slaves, both male and female; no one was to hold a fellow Jew in bondage. 10 So all the officials and people who entered into this covenant agreed that they would free their male and female slaves and no longer hold them in bondage. They agreed, and set them free. 11 But afterward they changed their minds and took back the slaves they had freed and enslaved them again.

12 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: . . . 15 Recently you repented and did what is right in my sight: Each of you proclaimed freedom to his countrymen. You even made a covenant before me in the house that bears my Name. 16 But now you have turned around and profaned my name; each of you has taken back the male and female slaves you had set free to go where they wished. You have forced them to become your slaves again.

17 "Therefore, this is what the Lord says: You have not obeyed me; you have not proclaimed freedom for your fellow countrymen. So I now proclaim 'freedom' for you, declares the Lord — 'freedom' to fall by the sword, plague and famine. I will make you abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth. 18 The men who have violated my covenant and have not fulfilled the terms of the covenant they made before me, I will treat like the calf they cut in two and then walked between its pieces.

NOTE:  This has always been the rules for slaves in Israel.  There are usually given a sum of money in exchange for a period of service, not unlike a sports contract.  But the maximum length of the contract was always seven years and typically less, depending on the number of years until the next release.  Apparently, Israel somewhere decided to stop obeying this rule, as well as not planting crops once every seven years.  God is aware of this sin but has not specifically called it out, at least not very often.  In this case, the King and the people recognize their sin, repent, and agree to do the right thing.  But after making that choice, some go back to their sin despite their commitment to change.  Consequently, God gives them 'freedom,' freedom to fall by calamity.  Additionally, God invokes the ancient ceremony of passing through the halved animals, where the oath taker agrees to be like the halved animals if he does not follow through on his promise.

As believers, we still struggle with sin.  Partly because we live in a fallen body.  Someday we will have a new body and the battle with sin will be over.  But, despite our fallen nature, we must take sin seriously.  We must never give in and give up.  We will fall again, but each time our repentance needs to be real and genuine.  We need to take sin seriously.  God takes it seriously, and using our body of flesh as an excuse is not sufficient if we are not serious about changing our course.